


The one where a bard gets kidnapped

by IfYouWerentSo



Category: The Witcher (TV), Wiedźmin | The Witcher - All Media Types
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, First Kiss, Getting Together, Jaskier also might be a pyromaniac, Jaskier is heartbroken and angry, Jaskier | Dandelion Has Feelings, M/M, and i think that is fair
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-14
Updated: 2020-04-26
Packaged: 2021-03-01 16:33:30
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23650120
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IfYouWerentSo/pseuds/IfYouWerentSo
Summary: Jaskier is rather surprised to hear that the White Wolf's bard has been kidnapped by some revengeful idiot. Especially since he was just enjoying his well-earned dinner.
Relationships: Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia & Jaskier | Dandelion, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Jaskier | Dandelion, Geralt z Rivii | Geralt of Rivia/Yennefer z Vengerbergu | Yennefer of Vengerberg (mentioned)
Comments: 31
Kudos: 486





	1. Chapter 1

_"Honestly fuck Geralt and his state of permanent emotional repression", Jaskier slurred with his head almost laying on the table._

_"How dare he blame all of his problems on me? He brought all of this upon himself! It's not my fault his stupid girlfriend left his stupid ass because he was stupid enough to free some stupid djinn. I mean that's not the whole story but really my point is... Wait what was my point again? Anyway, they are both so stupid. Screw them. No really, screw them both. I wish I could just forget all about them and move on with my life. You know what he said to me? That bastard said if life could give him one blessing it would be to take me off his hands. Can you believe that?"_

_He continued to ramble something unintelligible but the man sitting at his table just grinned and patted his shoulder._

_"That sounds rough, mate. But you know, I think I might be able to help you with that moving on problem of yours. You want another ale?"_

~~~~~~

Jaskier was sitting at the bar of some dingy lit inn in the middle of nowhere when the barmaid leaned over to him and whispered:

"Have you heard about the bard? You know, the one that follows this witcher around? _The White Wolf's bard_?"

"Err no?", Jaskier said, wary of where this conversation was going. She didn't seem to recognize him but that was just fine with him. He hadn't seen Geralt in months anyways. Not since Geralt thought it would be fair to blame all of his problems on Jaskier. Maybe Geralt had even gotten a new travel companion even though that seemed rather unlikely to Jaskier.

"Surely you must have heard some of his songs before. Oh, what was it? Valley of Plenty? No something else, I think. Maybe - "

"Toss a coin to your witcher", he couldn't help but correct her.

"Ah yes, of course. Anyway, some eh _gentlemen_ who stayed here a few days ago told me that some crazy baron kidnapped him. Apparently, he still has a score to settle with the white wolf."

Now whatever it was he had expected to hear, it certainly wasn't this.

How could he be the prisoner of some revengeful baron when he was sitting right here in this small town, eating his dinner. It could only mean that someone had been mistaken for him and this someone was now a prisoner because of that. Sure, Jaskier was used to getting into all kinds of trouble but that trouble was usually well deserved and didn't affect any innocent bystanders. Well, it had affected Geralt once or twice but those times were over.

The barmaid turned away to tend to some other guests but now Jaskier had to know more about this supposed bard and his kidnapping.

"Say, those men who told you about this. Who were they? Are they still in town?"

"No, they left the next morning. To be honest, they might have been mercenaries. I think they were on their way to this baron to help him fight the witcher when he arrives to save his bard. I hope he doesn't take too long. I don't even want to imagine what that bard has to go through in the baron's dungeon. Poor guy!"

Jaskier didn't want to either especially since he knew what the barmaid didn't. Geralt wouldn't come to save him. Geralt and _the bard_ hadn't travelled together in ages. Geralt didn't care about him. The only person who could right this wrong was Jaskier himself.

~~~~~

Later that evening, pacing around in his room Jaskier wondered about how all of this could have happened. How could some random guy be mistaken for him, the infamous, one of a kind Jaskier?

After the dragon hunt and his argument with Geralt, he had left. He had poured all his feelings, all his sadness, all his anger into one final song about Geralt of Rivia and Yennefer of Vengerberg and moved on. Or at least he liked to pretend he moved on. In reality, he spent the next weeks mostly drunk, singing in random taverns all while trying to get as far away as possible from that damned mountain.

He pretended to have a great time performing in a new city or town every night, drinking with his audience and waking up in a different bed every morning barely being able to remember the last night. The truth was he couldn't bear to perform his songs about his adventures with Geralt when the witchers last words still rung in his ears.

He never had the healthiest coping mechanisms and so he continued travelling the continent, performing _Toss a coin to your witcher_ and _Her sweet kiss_ as many times as his audience requested them all while drunk out of his mind. It really only gave credit to his skills as a bard that he was able to pull off his usual performances when he couldn't even remember them the next morning.

Until one morning when he woke up particularly hangover and with his room in disarray. The contents of his bags were scattered all over the place and his door was unlocked. And when he checked his belongings, he realised his notebook, the one he kept all his notes of his travels with Geralt in, was missing.

Jaskier had decided to take this as a sign of fate and finally move on. He stopped performing songs which reminded him of Geralt. Instead, he wrote new songs and performed them under his real name. He was no longer Jaskier who travelled with Geralt of Rivia. He was Julian Alfred Pankratz who sang captivating tales about fictive knights and their epic battles, about imaginary women who would steal any man's heart. And while these invented tales might not have been as successful as those about Geralt they were successful enough to buy him a room and a warm meal every most evenings.

It proved he didn't need Geralt. If anything Geralt had needed him. His songs had improved Geralt's image. They had turned the Butcher of Blaviken into the White Wolf who the people were glad to hire to kill their monsters for them and pay generously afterwards. So if anything it was Geralt's loss.

Even if he had his heart broken he gained a lot of experience which could only benefit him as a songwriter and as a person in general. Or at least that was what Jaskier liked to tell himself if he found himself missing Geralt.

And because he was a better person now he couldn't just let this poor man get tortured and killed just because he happened to be mistaken for Jaskier. And since Geralt obviously wouldn't come to save this fake Jaskier he had to save him himself.

~~~~~

A few other people around town had heard about the kidnapped bard as well and they all seemed to agree on two things. First, the baron's name was Corbin Villneuf and his mansion was a two days ride southwest of the town. And second, the bard was in big trouble if he truly was Baron Villneuf's prisoner. But they also told him about other things they knew about the bard.

"He came through town a few weeks ago and played his songs in the inn. I forget his name but I think it was some sort of flower. He played the lute quite well."

"My granddaughter loved his song about the dragon hunt. Now she wants to become an adventurer herself", an elderly man he told him, laughing and rolling his eyes fondly.

"He was really good with the kids, even let them play on his instruments", the blacksmith on the market told him when he bought himself two daggers.

And again and again: "He sang about this witcher fella a lot. If that guy is only half as badass as the bard made him seem in his songs, the baron and his mercenary army better watch out."

The more stories he listened to, the more it became apparent to Jaskier that this hadn't been a simple misunderstanding. Someone had been pretending to be him or rather pretending to be his former self. He didn't like the thought of that but that didn't change his determination. He was going to save fake-Jaskier and write his most popular songs about his own act of heroism. (And of course, because it was also the right thing to do.) So it was time to bring back some of his _special_ survival skills he had thought he had long abandoned for good.


	2. Chapter 2

Baron Villneuf's mansion laid fairly secluded surrounded by some old oak trees and its backyard adjoined the forest in which Jaskier was currently hiding. He had been watching the mansion for the better part of the day, trying to figure out the layout and the routines of any eventual guards. By now he was pretty sure that the small windows on the left backside of the main house were leading to some sort of basement prison cells. That or the baron was securing the windows to his wine cellar with strong looking iron bars.

There was also a pair of guards patrolling the grounds around the mansion, but they didn't seem to be the most enthusiastic about their jobs. Jaskier guessed they were mercenaries as well. One time when they had walked past the bush he was hiding in, he could hear the smaller one of the two complaining about "this job not paying enough to fight the fucking Butcher of Blaviken". As soon as he mentioned the witcher the taller one elbowed his colleague in the rips and glanced around nervously.

Jaskier had almost laughed out loud at the guard's concern about Geralt. Little did that guy now. Geralt was not be the one they should be worrying about right now.

By now it was getting dark outside. Feeling like he had done enough scouting and that it was the perfect time to set his plan into action, Jaskier waited for the moment the guards walked across the backyard and disappeared behind the mansion again. As soon as they seemed to be out of earshot he sprinted across the lawn. When he reached the stable, he sneaked inside. There were four horses in their respective boxes which Jaskier swiftly unlocked. Then he hid behind the stable doors and awaited the guard's next round, praying nobody would bother to check the horses in the next five minutes.

Now it was time for the slightly crazier part of his plan. He readied himself, mentally going through all his next steps while fussing with the bottle and the matchbox in his hands. The bottle was filled with an easily flammable liquid he had purchased from an alchemist. (Or at least a woman claiming to be knowledgeable of all sorts of chemicals.) He had also stuffed an old rag into the bottleneck. 

When the guards passed him a second time, he estimated the time it would take them to reach the point the furthest away from the backside. Then he lit the rag, threw the bottle straight into the haystack in the back and bolted out of the stable, leaving the doors wide open.

The haystack caught fire quickly and before Jaskier even arrived at his next target, he could hear the horses neighing anxiously. He reached the kitchen door just when the first horse fleed the stable and ran off into the woods. The other horses following closely behind. 

Jaskier entered the house through the backdoor which the kitchen boy had left unlocked earlier that day. Just in time as the first guards and servants began arriving at the stable which was now up in flames. They were shouting and running around frantically. Some chased after the horses while others tried to extinguish the flames by getting water from the small pond in the garden. But it was all to no avail, the horses were far too frightened, and the wooden stable was completely ablaze.

Paying the chaos unfolding outside no mind, Jaskier focused on his next task. He had completed step one (entering the mansion without anyone noticing), step two (rescuing fake-Jaskier) would be more difficult but not as difficult as step three: escaping from the mansion with fake-Jaskier without getting killed. But first step two.  
As Jaskier made his way across the mansion he luckily only encountered one other person, a servant boy who was on his way to help the others and barely took notice of him.

The only problem occurred when he rushed down the stairs and around the last corner and stood face to face with one of the (supposed) mercenaries. She was leaning against the door of to the prison cell, her eyes wandering between him and the small window nervously. 

"What's going on outside? Why is everyone screaming? Did he arrive?"

"No, the stable, it caught fire. Villneuf ordered everyone to move their asses outside and get it under control."

Fortunately, she seemed to believe him and started to make her way past him. Jaskier almost felt bad for a second for what he was about to do but he knew he had to do it. He knocked her across the back of her head with the handle of one of his daggers as hard as he could. She sunk to the floor immediately. Jaskier tied her hands behind her back with a makeshift rope made of the rest of the old rags and propped her into a corner. He was glad when he could see her chest slowly rising and falling. Then he took the keys from her belt.

When he stepped into the small cell the first thing he noticed was the smell of decay, blood and vomit. It almost made him gag but then he noticed the sunken down figure which was tied to the wall by their two hands. The only feature he could clearly make out was a head of brown locks perhaps not completely unlike his own hair. Most of the man's face seemed to be swollen and his clothes (or rather the rags that passed for his clothes) were torn and had dark red stains. Suddenly Jaskier was awfully glad that the tiny window provided only a very limited amount of light.

The man hadn't even stirred when Jaskier had slipped into the cell and he supposed that he was either asleep or that he had passed out from the pain. He hoped fervently that the former was the case for the poor man's sake. It wouldn't help anyone to feel sorry for him though so Jaskier started to unlock the man's chains. Only then did the man show a sign of life, moaning in pain when he dropped to the floor completely.

"Don't worry. I won't hurt you. What's your name?", Jaskier whispered and could barely make out a pained "Elais" in return.

"Ok, Elais. I'm Julian. We're going to get you out of here. Can you put your arm around my shoulders?"

As Jaskier tried to get Elais in an upright position he could hear movement in the hallway on the other side of the door. Cursing under his breath he helped Elais down on the floor again. He had hoped to avoid a confrontation with the baron's henchmen and he had thought the fire and the horses would keep them busy for far longer. But now it seemed like he had no other choice but to fight. So, he took out his daggers and stepped in front of Elais in what he hoped to be an at least somewhat intimidating manner.

He could hear heavy steps entering the small room leading to the cell. The person they belonged to seemed to pause for a moment presumably as they noticed the tied-up mercenary in the corner. Then they continued across the room to the door. Jaskier raised his daggers. His best chance was probably to strike as soon as they opened the door, catching them by surprise.

The door swung open and Jaskier lunged at the figure standing in the door frame. He managed to slash one of their forearms but was shoved away forcefully and stumbled backwards. Only then did he catch a glimpse of the intruder’s face. White hair, golden eyes, furious expression.

"Geralt?"

Jaskier lowered his daggers. Geralt blinked. His expression changed, turning from anger to confusion then something like relief before he guarded his expression as he did so often, making it hard even for Jaskier to read him.

"Jaskier. You're not hurt." He stared at him as if he couldn't believe what he was seeing. Geralt lowered his sword as well and slowly reached out as if to touch him before jerking his hand back again.

Jaskier stared back at Geralt. It had been far too long since he had seen him and even though he was technically still mad he couldn't help but feel immensely relieved at seeing Geralt alive and relatively well. He looked good (but then again Geralt always looked good) although he seemed like he hadn't slept probably in at least a week and the cut on his forearm was bleeding slowly. 

For a moment no one said a word until Elais started having a coughing fit, crouched on the floor behind Jaskier. It drew their attention back to him. Geralt furrowed his brows.

"Who's that guy?"

"Eh, I'll explain it to you later. Help me get him out of here though? The fire won't keep them occupied forever."

That and the pained groan from Elais seemed to snap Geralt out of his trance. Together they lifted him from the ground, each slinging an arm around their shoulder and keeping their blade's ready in their other hand.

They made their way back up the stairs and through the hallways of the mansion. When they stepped through the front door Jaskier saw the dismembered bodies of several guards scattered across the path leading to the entrance. He cast a sideways glance at Geralt.

"They wouldn't let me get to you", he shrugged.

Carefully they stepped around the bodies, making their way to the outskirts of the woods. Suddenly Jaskier stopped.

"Wait a minute here, please."

Before Geralt could stop him, he had turned back and taken another bottle out of his bag. He lit the rag and threw it directly through one of the large windows. When he saw that the curtains caught fire easily, he turned back with a glint in his eyes and grinned at Geralt.

"That will keep them busy for a while."

Geralt let out a snort at that, a faint grin on his lips as well.

"Good. I hope his whole house burns to the ground, that fucking bastard."

They reached the woods. Roach was carefully hidden behind some large trees and bushes.

"Roach, my old friend! I'm so happy to see you. I hope Geralt's been treating you right. He can be a bit crude from time to time, as you know my girl", Jaskier exclaimed when he saw her waiting for them, happily munching on some grass. Roach's head perked up when she heard him and she nickered softly in what Jaskier liked to believe was an affectionate way. Geralt looked at him before he greeted her as well and if Jaskier squinted he might have actually looked a bit guilty.

"He needs a healer", Geralt said as he lifted Elais on Roach's back. "There's a doctor in the next village. We should be able to reach it in a few hours. I've booked a room in the inn there for the next few days. Stay there with me?"

At that last sentence, he looked at Jaskier with a hopeful expression.

Jaskier felt his mouth go dry. It had been easy to pretend that nothing had changed between them. To pretend that they hadn't seen each other in months after having had a big fight. To rather fall back into their old dynamic as if nothing had happened. Now that their rescue mission was over, they really needed to talk. If Geralt would be willing to talk, but it seemed like that might be the case for once.

"Yeah, I mean sure. I'd love to. If you don't mind of course", he mumbled but he also couldn't help to feel at least a bit hopeful as they made their way through the woods.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok I know I said there would be two parts but I felt like the Talk deserved it's own chapter.  
> As always kudos and feedback are greatly appreciated. I hope you like this idea and Jaskier lighting stuff on fire.


	3. Chapter 3

Jaskier was sitting on the bed, fiddling with one of his daggers and avoiding looking at Geralt who busied himself with looking after his armor and weapons. After leaving Elais in the doctor's care they had retreated into Geralt's room. Geralt hadn't made any attempts to start a conversation so far and in the past Jaskier wouldn't have minded filling the silence with his chatter but now he just couldn't bring him himself to do so. He knew that Geralt hadn't actually minded him talking or singing as much as he often pretended. After all, the witcher would have had plenty of opportunities to get rid of him years before ever meeting Yennefer. He never did though so Jaskier clung to the hope that there was more to their relationship than Geralt just not wanting to bother to with sending him away once and for all. Well until the dragon hunt at least.

He couldn't help but glance nervously at Geralt, pretty sure he had been going over the same spot on his armor for at least 5 minutes. It was obvious that he was stalling since he didn't even pretend to look at the armor instead staring intently at a point on the floor next to Jaskier's feet. But Jaskier also knew that it rarely brought any good when one tried to force Geralt to talk when he didn't want to. So, he held his tongue and continued to stare out of the window into the night.

After a few more minutes of awkward silence, Geralt abruptly stood up, thrust his armor on the small table in the corner and turned to face Jaskier.

"I can't believe you'd just waltz into this guy's personal torture dungeon to save some random guy. He would have killed you if you had get caught."

Wait, was Geralt actually angry at him for risking his own life to save someone's else? Talk about being hypocritical.

"Well, it was kind of my fault that he ended up in there in the first place, wasn't it? If I hadn't bragged about knowing you so well in the past, the baron wouldn't even have considered kidnapping me to get to you. I mean, I guess I can be glad he only got hold of my imposter", he scoffed.

The last thing Jaskier had expected was Geralt being angry at him for being a good person but he was still staring at him with his eyebrows all scrunched up. This only made him remember his anger towards Geralt which he had originally felt after he had left Geralt for good.

"And it wasn't like I could expect you to save him, either. You made it pretty clear that I only caused you problems the last time we spoke."

At that Geralt lost his angry stance and sat down on the chair with a sigh. When he looked at him again it wasn't with anger but with sadness.

"And I've regretted it ever since. I shouldn't have blamed my problems with Yennefer or the child surprise on you. I am sorry. I really am, Jaskier" he spoke quietly.

Jaskier hadn't expected to get an apology out of Geralt so quickly or even at all.

"Oh, you know I kind of get it. Having a child surprise sounds kind of like a lot of responsibility. And Yennefer... Well, you love her and she just left you after unfairly blaming you for her issues. I certainly know what that one feels like", he said wistfully.

"Yeah, I do love her, but it doesn't change the fact that I never should have said what I said."

He couldn't help but feel his heart sink at Geralt words. Never before had he heard Geralt admit his love for Yennefer although it had been obvious. When he had tried to convince him of basically running away to the coast with him, he had almost felt bad for it. Especially since deep down, he knew that if it wasn't for his jealousy, he would have liked her too.

"So, were you able to fix things with her?", he asked even though he didn't know if he wanted to know the answer.

"No, the time's not right yet. Besides, I felt like I had to fix things between us first."

"So, what took you so long?"

"One might say I spend quite some time eh -"

"Moping around?", Jaskier suggested with a grin.

"Witcher's don't mope around", Geralt grunted. "I was thinking. About what to do. By the time I tried finding you, I couldn't because wherever I was pointed to there were only other bards singing your songs. Most of them weren't even doing a good job. Then I heard you were kidnapped. I was so afraid that I had lost you forever. I -"

Geralt couldn't seem to find the right words. He clenched his hands into fists and looked away. His fists trembled and Jaskier wanted to reach out to him to offer comfort, but he wasn't sure if he was allowed to. When Geralt spoke up again it was so low that he had to strain his ears to hear it but there was a certain urgency in his voice so Jaskier could do nothing but listen and stare at him. He felt like he needed to hear what Geralt had to say.

"When I thought I had lost you, I felt like I was going crazy. And I just couldn't think straight until I saw you again. It was like I was in some sort of frenzy and I only snapped out of it once I saw you in that basement. I was so happy when I realised you were alive because the thought of losing you - It's just unbearable to me."

The last words were only a whisper and Geralt finally looked him in the eyes again with a pained yet desperate expression. Seeing the man he still considered his friend in so much discomfort Jaskier finally allowed himself to walk over to him and gently laid a hand on his shoulders.

Geralt who was still sitting on the chair glanced up to him. His eyes shining with emotions like Jaskier had never seen before.

"I am so sorry that it took me so long to realize how much you mean to me, Jaskier. And for ever treating you so coldly. You were - You are my best friend and I am sorry for ever letting you think I don't care about you. So, please - Please-"

"It's okay, Geralt. I forgive you. How could I not? Just promise me that you won't do stupid shit like that again, okay?", he spoke just as quietly, being unable to look Geralt in the eyes.

 _I love you but you broke my heart_ , Jaskier wanted to shout suddenly but he couldn't bring himself to say it out loud.

Perhaps he was the stupid one for taking him back so easily but the desperation in Geralt's voice and eyes told him this was about more than Geralt not wanting to wash his own hair any longer. And it was true, he did forgive him. He already forgave him weeks ago.

Some of the tension left Geralt body, clearly glad to be forgiven but there was still something burning in his eyes. He stood up again so he was eye to eye with Jaskier and carefully reached out to take his hands. His eyes never left the bard's face, searching for any kind of sign that he was overstepping his boundaries.

Jaskier's eyes widened ever so slightly. He would be lying if he pretended like he hadn't imagined various scenarios like this over the years. A shiver ran down his spine even though the room was pleasantly warm. Standing this close to the witcher he could feel the body warmth radiating off him. Geralt looked at him with soft and warm eyes, holding his hands and suddenly all his longing and wanting came back with full force after suppressing most of it for years.

_I'm weak my love, and I am wanting._

Never had that been more true. And Jaskier knew that whatever would happen next it would decide whether Geralt would break his heart irrevocably or make up for years of wanting but never having.

He felt like he needed to say something or to pull away to save himself the disappointment, but he couldn't move. All he cared about at this moment was Geralt looking at him like he was the most important person to him.

"The past few months haven't only made me realise how much I miss you when you're not with me. I also realised that I've wasted so much time pretending this whole witcher's don't have feelings bullshit was true."

"Because of Yennefer?", Jaskier asked feeling hurt. Of course, he had misinterpreted the whole situation. Yennefer and Geralt were tied together by fate while he was just a mere human who decided to follow Geralt one day. He tried to pull his hands from Geralt's but he only tightened his grasp.

"No, you idiot. Because of you obviously. We've spent the last ten years travelling with each other and the whole time I pretended I didn't need you", Geralt smiled at him tentatively seeming unusually bashful and self-conscious. Slowly it began to dawn on Jaskier what he was trying to say.  
"Like I hadn't wanted you for years. Like I am not in l-"

Jaskier didn't even let him finish before he darted towards Geralt and finally kissed him. It was slow and gentle and for the first time in years, Jaskier felt completely at peace. His heart which had been beating so rapidly for the past few minutes calmed down.

When he could feel Geralt smiling against his lips he couldn't stop the grin spreading over his face as well. So even though he didn't want to stop kissing Geralt any time soon, he dropped his head on his shoulder and slung his arms around his waist.

"I love you too by the way", Jaskier murmured against his shoulder. He kind of never wanted to move again but by now it was late in the night and Jaskier started to feel the exhaustion caused by this rather tumultuous day creep up on on him. Reluctantly, he took a small step back, never breaking contact with Geralt though.

"Do you maybe want me to take look at that?", he gestured to the cut on Geralt's forearm sheepishly. It wasn't bleeding anymore but Jaskier couldn't deny that he enjoyed fussing over Geralt if he knew his injuries were only superficial and he hadn't actually to worry about him. Especially since these were often the only times the witcher would allow himself to be cared for by him. Or at least it had been like that in the past, with the way this evening was progressing he hoped that this was one of the things that would change between them from now on.

"I mean, it's barely a cut but sure. And afterwards, we take a bath?" Geralt suggested still smiling. It was probably the longest Jaskier had ever seen him smile and by Melitele did he love it.

"I like the way you think. Sit down on the bed, I'll get the bandages", he quickly pecked Geralt on the lips just because he could do that now and went to search his bags.

~~~

A few weeks later the two of them were indulging in one of Geralt's favourite old past times: Sitting in the darkest corner of an inn and being ignored by most people around.

Usually, Jaskier would be the one trying to entertain the crowd by performing his newest songs but after they had arrived this evening they had come to find there was already another bard trying his best to earn some coin.

"I can't believe people really thought he was me. He sounds nothing like me", Jaskier exclaimed, watching none other than Elais perform on the other side of the room.

"May I remind you, you sing about getting abortions. So really, you are in no place to judge his lyrics", Geralt mumbled but had to hide his grin behind his ale.

"Ok first, that was one song and it was a long time ago. And second, I always knew you were watching and listening to me that day and now that you admitted it you can't take it back."

"I always listen to your songs. I like your voice." Geralt simply said like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh. Well, I - In that case, I-" Even though Jaskier slowly got used to Geralt randomly complimenting him, he still didn't know how to react to it whenever Geralt caught him by surprise with it. That didn't mean he didn't absolutely love it though.  
"Well sadly not everyone can have a way with words as I have", he settled on as a response.

"You wouldn't want to keep a man with bread in his pants waiting?", Geralt only said before slowly putting his arm on the backrest and around Jaskier's shoulders. Jaskier only rolled his eyes and leaned back so Geralt could put his arm properly around him.

"Yeah, it did work on you in the end though so there's no need to be so smug about it", he huffed.

Geralt's only response was to hum in agreement and pull him even closer into his side, so Jaskier considered this a won argument.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It took me ages to write that last chapter. Emotional talks are really not my strong suit. I also feel like maybe Jaskier should have been angrier towards Geralt during this conversation but I just could not get the absolute resignation on his face out of my mind when Geralt shouted those things at him. Anyway netflix!Jaskier deserved so much better and he better gets an apology next season (preferably without dying).  
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this and please let me know what you think!


End file.
